A 32-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the largest ever seizure of the drug methamphetamine in the State.
A Garda spokesman confirmed that six kilos of a drug seized in Birr, Co Offaly today and originally thought to be cocaine, were later identified as methamphetamine.
Cannabis was also seized by gardai and the total street value of the drugs is estimated at €500,000.
Gardai said the arrest is part of an international investigation into the activities of a Lithuanian drugs trafficking gang. The Garda National Drugs Unit accompanied by Revenue's Customs Service carried out the operation
The man is being detained at Tullamore Garda station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice ( Drug Trafficking ) Act 1996. Follow-up searches were carried out in Cork, Kerry and Meath.
Separately, gardai in Sligo and Leitrim have arrested and questioned five men over the alleged sale and supply of cannabis resin and cocaine, following a series of searches in recent days.
Some 12 searches took place in Sligo and Leitrim from Sunday until today, as part of the force's Operation Clean Street a Garda statement said. The operation, aimed at disrupting local drug dealers in the Sligo area, has been underway since November 2007.
"n a follow-up operation, members of the divisional drugs unit, assisted by the crime task force unit, and regular units carried out a total of 12 searches in Co Sligo and Leitrim from Sunday July 20th to Tuesday July 22nd," the Garda statement added.
"A number of cannabis plants and cultivation equipment were seized in one of the searches. Cannabis resin and cocaine were found at a number of other search locations."
Gardai said a number of people will appear before Sligo District Court on July 31st arising out of these arrests.